The police don't want to become the "meat in the sandwich" between governments and First Nations protesters, says the head of the Ontario Provincial Police.
But Julian Fantino said Monday that his officers will be prepared to maintain order during the upcoming native day of protest on June 29.
"We're prepared to take action if and when warranted," he told 麻豆影视net's Mike Duffy Live. "But clearly we're in a predicament where we have to exercise a whole lot of care and caution."
The Assembly of First Nations passed a resolution last month that would see protesters close down Canada's rail traffic, in part to press their agenda on issues like land claims.
In Ontario, there has been a long-simmering land dispute in Caledonia where native protesters have laid claim to land being developed for housing.
Clashes have broken out there, and OPP officers have had to keep the peace between protesters, townspeople and others opposed to their occupation.
In April, Mohawk protesters from the Bay of Quinte area in eastern Ontario blockaded a CN Rail line in protest over a quarry at the centre of a land claims controversy.
Late last month, a long-awaited report into the 1995 Ipperwash standoff on the shores of Lake Huron was released.
That protest stemmed from a land claim centred on a provincial park. An OPP officer shot protester Dudley George dead.
Commissioner Sydney Linden placed the blame on the feds, Ontario and the OPP for making decisions that raised the risk of a violent confrontation.
For the threatened upcoming day of protest, Fantino said, "We're pleading and encouraging people that whatever is done, that it not jeopardize the public peace or endanger anyone."
The federal government is taking steps to move on the land claims file in the hopes of turning down the temperature.
On June 12, Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced a $200-million plan to speed up land claims settlements.
There are about 800 outstanding claims in Canada, with an average of 13 years being spent to resolve a claim. The Tory plan will attempt to speed that process up, with claims unresolved after three years going to an independent tribunal.
Fantino said there appears to be some goodwill towards native people and their grievances right now.
If an ugly incident erupts, "I feel that so much will be lost, and we can't afford that," he said.
